Year in Review: After undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2008, Hudson missed the remainder of that season. He started his minor league rehab stint in Single-A ball in late July of ‘09, and returned to the Majors in September and was his old self. In 42.1 September innings, Hudson made seven starts, striking out 30 batters and walking another 13. He won two games and ended the year with a 3.61 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. His velocity was right in line with what it has been in the past, with Hudson’s sinker clocking in just above 90 mph with nasty movement and the same superb location he’s had throughout his career.

The Year Ahead: Hudson recently signed a three-year contract to stay with the Braves, keeping him with the organization he’s been with since 2005. Hudson has never been much of a strikeout artist, so his fantasy value has been limited to wins and a low ERA. While being a good ground-ball pitcher is great in real life, his lack of a great defensive infield defense means a good amount of those grounders will be wasted, which could contribute to an inflated WHIP. The Braves look to be an above-average team heading into 2010, so the wins will be there. Hudson’s ERA is likely to be below the 3.50 mark again, so you can take more chances with strikeout pitchers if you have Hudson on your roster. (Zach Sanders)

Profile: Hudson went 17-9 with a 2.83 ERA in 2010 -- even garnering some Cy Young attention -- but below the surface he looked more like Derek Lowe than some might like to admit. He has made up for his lack of strikeout punch (5.47 K/9 in 2010, 6.06 career) as his career has traveled further from his peak -- his two best ground-ball percentages have come in the last two years, and his 64.4% last year led qualified starters in the category. He also showed his always excellent control last year (2.91 BB/9 in 2010, 2.78 career), and, paired with a bump in fastball velocity, he's an unqualified Tommy John success story. But, as with all ground-ball pitchers, he's a bit at the mercy of the bouncing ball. When the ball bounces his way, as it did in 2010 (.250 BABIP), he looks great. When it doesn't (.335 BABIP in 2009), he looks like a pumpkin -- at least when it comes to fantasy baseball. The lack of strikeouts diminishes his upside, and if his 2010 statistics make him expensive in this year's drafts, he's probably a pitcher to avoid. He could put up an ERA in the high threes in 2011. (Eno Sarris)

The Quick Opinion: Hudson's arm bounced back from surgery, but some fortuitous luck masked the fact that the 2010 version wasn't quite as good as his superficial statistics indicated.

Profile: Hudson churned out another typical season consisting of 200+ innings pitched, a handful of wins and a strong ground-ball rate. He'll never lead the league in strikeouts (or come close), but his strikeout rate jumped to 6.61 last season -- his best performance in the category since 2001. While his stats were superficially good in 2010, Hudson's peripherals fell in line last season. He is typically able to outperform his FIP, but the numbers nearly matched up last season (3.22 ERA to 3.39 FIP) -- proving that discussions of his demise were premature. He won't rack up strikeouts, but Hudson has still got the stuff to succeed in the majors and he's as dependable as they come. (Chris Cwik)

The Quick Opinion: Hudson throws 200+ innings, consistently outperforms his FIP, and typically posts a solid win total every year. Expect more of the same in 2012.

Profile: While Tim Hudson was solid with his win total with a decent 3.62 ERA, he posted his lowest strikeout percentage since 2004 and will turn 38 in the middle of next season. He's a decent pitcher to own, but draft or acquire him with the understanding that he is in the decline phase of his career which may lead to continually worse numbers on an annual basis. And remember that his strikeout rate will be a minus that will potentially require work to undo. (Ben Duronio)

The Quick Opinion: Hudson will enjoy having Andrelton Simmons behind him for a full season, but his age and declining strikeout rate make him a back of the roto rotation type pitcher.

Profile: Hudson's 2013 ended with a gruesome ankle injury. He's been one of those pitchers who is much better in real life than in fantasy due to a low strikeout rate and a high ground-ball rate. Those ground balls are his bread and butter, and they have allowed him to post ERAs in the mid to high threes in recent seasons. Hudson will now return to the Bay area (this time to San Francisco) and should provide the Giants with a reliable veteran presence. Fantasy owners can count on decent rate stats and a chance for wins, but strikeouts will be a problem category. Be sure to pair Hudson with an elite strikeout reliever if you opt to roster him. (Brad Johnson)

The Quick Opinion: Hudson was signed early in the offseason by the San Francisco Giants. With his ground-balling ways and new spacious home park, Hudson should provide stable innings and decent rate stats. Alas, he's always hurt fantasy owners in the strikeout category, which limits his value.

Profile: Tim Hudson has always been somewhat of an undervalued fantasy asset; sure, he doesn’t strike many guys out, but he doesn’t give up walks, and his ERA and WHIP are generally average or better. Hudson was his usual self last season: he struck out only 120 batters, but had a WHIP five points better than the league average, and an ERA 5% below league average. Despite only winning nine games in 31 starts, all of that added up to a replacement-level mixed-league starting pitcher. In what is likely to be his last season, it’s hard to expect a repeat of fantasy relevance, but he’s still easily going to be owned in NL-only formats. If you’re in a standard mixed league, there’s no reason to spend a pick on Hudson; but, if you’re in an ottoneu SABR points format, Hudson isn’t a bad one-year rental based on his homer suppression. (Zach Sanders)

The Quick Opinion: Even with his inability to generate strikeouts and only amassing nine wins, Hudson was still a replacement-level fantasy starter last year, a tribute to workload and WHIP. Don’t expect quite the same value this year in his age-39 season.

Profile: Listen, if you want to still draft Tim Hudson, I almost certainly can't do anything about it. Instead, however, think of honoring him in some other way. Write a check to his favorite charity. Name your dog after him. Keep changing the image of the Wikipedia page of actor Timothy Hutton. It's your life, we all just think you could be more productive with it, is all. (David Temple)